Some Answered Questions

Part Four -- On the Origin, Powers and Conditions of Man

58. THE DEGREE OF KNOWLEDGE POSSESSED BY MAN AND THE DIVINE MANIFESTATIONS

Question.--Of what degree is the perception of the human
world, and what are its limitations?

Answer.--Know that perception varies. The lowest degree
of perception is that of the animals--that is to say, the
natural feeling which appears through the powers of the
senses, and which is called sensation. In this, men and
animals are sharers; moreover, some animals with regard
to the senses are more powerful than man. But in humanity,
perception differs and varies in accordance with the
different conditions of man.

The first condition of perception in the world of nature
is the perception of the rational soul. In this perception
and in this power all men are sharers, whether they be
neglectful or vigilant, believers or deniers. This human
rational soul is God's creation; it encompasses and excels
other creatures; as it is more noble and distinguished, it
encompasses things. The power of the rational soul can
discover the realities of things, comprehend the
peculiarities of beings, and penetrate the mysteries of
existence. All sciences, knowledge, arts, wonders, institutions,
discoveries and enterprises come from the exercised
intelligence of the rational soul. There was a time
when they were unknown, preserved mysteries and hidden
secrets; the rational soul gradually discovered them
and brought them out from the plane of the invisible and
the hidden into the realm of the visible. This is the greatest
power of perception in the world of nature, which in its
highest flight and soaring comprehends the realities, the
properties and the effects of the contingent beings.

But the universal divine mind, which is beyond nature,
is the bounty of the Preexistent Power. This universal
mind is divine; it embraces existing realities, and it receives
the light of the mysteries of God. It is a conscious
power, not a power of investigation and of research. The
intellectual power of the world of nature is a power of investigation,
and by its researches it discovers the realities
of beings and the properties of existences; but the
heavenly intellectual power, which is beyond nature, embraces
things and is cognizant of things, knows them,
understands them, is aware of mysteries, realities and divine
significations, and is the discoverer of the concealed
verities of the Kingdom. This divine intellectual power is
the special attribute of the Holy Manifestations and the
Dawning-places of prophethood; a ray of this light falls
upon the mirrors of the hearts of the righteous, and a portion
and a share of this power comes to them through the
Holy Manifestations.

The Holy Manifestations have three conditions: one,
the physical condition; one, that of the rational soul; and
one, that of the manifestation of perfection and of the
lordly splendor. The body comprehends things according
to the degree of its ability in the physical world; therefore,
in certain cases it shows physical weakness. For example:
"I was sleeping and unconscious; the breeze of God passed
over Me and awoke Me, and commanded Me to proclaim
the Word"; or when Christ in His thirtieth year was baptized,
and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him; before
this the Holy Spirit did not manifest itself in Him. All
these things refer to the bodily condition of the Manifestations;
but Their heavenly condition embraces all things,
knows all mysteries, discovers all signs, and rules over all
things; before as well as after Their mission, it is the same.
That is why Christ has said: "I am Alpha and Omega, the
first and the last" [Cf. Rev. 22:13.]--that is to say, there has never been
and never shall be any change and alteration in Me.

Some Answered Questions
Part Four -- On the Origin, Powers and Conditions of Manpages 217-220